Stars at Ducks
THE STORY: The Anaheim Ducks are making quite the stand at home. The Ducks will look to extend their season-high winning streak to seven games at the Honda Center on Wednesday when they host the Pacific Division rival Dallas Stars. While home cookin' has been kind to Anaheim, life on the road has certainly not been a bowl of cherries for Dallas. First-year coach Glen Gulutzan's club has dropped five of its last seven away from the Lone Star State. The Stars' last memory of the American Airlines Center was a positive one, however, as they snapped a five-game losing skid with a 1-0 victory over the Ducks on Jan. 24. Finding the back of the net remains a chore for Dallas, which has mustered just seven goals in its last six contests.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, NHLCA, FSSW+
ABOUT THE STARS (25-21-2): Dallas' struggles can be linked to the team's being shorthanded due to injury. C Jamie Benn, who missed five games while recovering from an emergency appendectomy, was able to take part in the All-Star festivities this past weekend and is set to rejoin his team. For his part, C Mike Ribeiro returned to action versus the Ducks after a six-game absence with a knee injury. Ribeiro picked up the primary assist on D Alex Goligoski's goal in the victory.
ABOUT THE DUCKS (19-23-7): Anaheim is making a spirit surge to get back in the postseason equation. The Ducks rode Andrew Cogliano's natural hat trick to post a 4-1 triumph over the division rival Phoenix Coyotes on Tuesday. With its ninth victory in 11 games (9-1-1), Anaheim now sits 10 points out of a playoff spot. "Everybody in the room knows what we have to do," Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau said. "We've known what we've had to do for a month now. There are teams that haven't reached their sense of urgency yet. We've reached ours earlier than most teams."
OVERTIME:
1. Dallas has successfully killed off 15 of its last 16 shorthanded situations.
2. Anaheim G Jonas Hiller has posted a 7-2-1 mark with one shutout and a 1.56 goals-against average in his last 10 games. The 29-year-old Swiss netminder will vie for his first win in four starts versus Dallas this season.